many who were devoted to helping him helping the people of hawaii and the people of america. we lost a great hero and a true patriot and i've lost a real good friend. he was one of the great men of the senate who welcomed me and helped me get started when i first came to the senate. mr. president, it's well known that i was the first democratic woman elected in her own right and when i came to the senate there was only one other woman. i say today though i was the only democratic woman, though i was all by myself, i was never alone because i had great men in the united states senate who helped me get started and mentored me and taught me how to be an effective senator. senator inouye was a group of those men who in the warmest, most generous, most helpful way welcomed me to the united states senate. he helped me get on the powerful appropriations committee. he was my teacher and mentor. he also had a wonderful way of communicating with all of us. and as each new class of senators, each new class of women senators arrived, he welcomed each and every one of us with the same war